Tuesday, September 21

The holidays will be here before you know it and this is the perfect time to get started. With just a few variations, Amish Friendship Bread becomes a delicious Christmas present. And, it's your choice of how dramatic you want to be. For me, the standard recipe has generally produced three standard loaves of bread or one large bundt bread. To get a head start on Christmas, why not make two loaves and 3 pint-sized canned breads from a single recipe. Before long, you will have plenty of Hostess gifts ready for all those holiday parties on your calendar. Before sealing the jar, adding a quarter cup of rum or brandy will ensure that your gift will keep indefinitely. Without the rum./brandy, your gift will have a shelf life of between 3 to 6 months without any loss of flavor. Keep in a cool, dark, part of your pantry or on the bottom shelf of your refrigerator.

Monday, September 13

One of my favorite kitchen appliances is the dehydrator -- I have a Nesco, one of those round ones that will hold up to 12 trays but still takes up little room. My girls loved to snack on dehydrated vegetables -- they're sweet, crunchy, and the flavor is so good, it's almost beyond description; but, more to the point, they're healthy! This year's garden was more beauty than produce which meant I would have to supplement my harvest with a trip to the local farmer's market. These two jars came from just one peck of tomatoes -- the jar on the left has tomato flakes for soups and stews needing a burst of color along with taste and the jar on the right has tomato powder for fresh tasting flavorings, pastes, catsups, and sauces. Believe me, the taste result is well worth the effort.

Thursday, September 9

This is one of those ideal solar meals that can be cooked in a conventional oven, crockpot, or solar oven. Short ribs need slow cooking and low temperatures to break down the fibrous tissue to a melt-in-your-mouth experience. (If the fibrous tissue doesn't break down, imagine long-term chewing of dental floss...) This meal produces a table full of 'rollin' eyes and gnashin' teeth' (as they say in the country), after which you sit out on the porch to listen to home music and the old folks' tooth-suckin' wisdom... (urp!) So, let's get started...

Monday, September 6

I always think of the fall as a time of new growth. School starts and minds are open to new information that will help us discover how to continue or choose a lifetime path. In that light, here is my September toast, to you:

May you... let the past be your strength to the present ...set your goals in support of your future ...and have the knowledge to see when your direction changes, to stay the course of your dreams.

Thursday, September 2

It's been hard thinking of heavy meals in this incredibly hot weather, so I had one my favorite light summer brunches, a frittata with herbs and a few veggies from the garden. The Artisan Loaf bread is featured, again, because I've been testing my process to make sure you can do the same thing -- lower heat with the end result being a crunchy crust and beautifully textured inside... Then, the palate was cleansed with some Chamomile tea in one of my favorite teapots...